From: United Nations Environment Programme
Published April 7, 2008 08:14 AM

http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=530&ArticleID=5764&l=en

Brussels -The illegal international trade in environmentally sensitive items such as ozone depleting substances, toxic chemicals, hazardous waste, and endangeredspecies is a serious problem with global impact. This scourge which affects all countries threatens human health, deteriorates the environment, and results in revenue loss for governments in some cases. In fact the illegal trade in wildlife can be as profitable as dealing in narcotics. Shawls made from the wool of Tibetan antelope, the sale of which is completely illegal, are sold for up to 20,000 Euros each, while caviar from endangered sturgeon approaches 8,000 Euros per kilo on the retail market. Added to this is the alarming rise in virulent wildlife diseases, such as SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) and avian influenza that cross species lines to infect humans and endanger public health.

Ozone depleting substances (ODS) such as those used in refrigeration and air conditioning systems not only destroy the earth's protective shield (the stratospheric ozone layer), but if released into the atmosphere also contribute to climatechange since they are also powerful greenhouse gases. Illegal trade in ODS has become a global phenomenon. Toxic waste too causes long-term poisoning of soil and water, affecting people's health and living conditions, sometimes irreversibly. Unscrupulous waste trade has become a serious concern since the 1980s and has now become a criminal offence under the Basel Convention on the "Control of Trans-boundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal". The waste may pass through several countries before reaching its final destination, making it more difficult to pinpoint responsibilities.